Counselor's Notes
|
Library
|
Volunteer
Opportunities |
PTO
|
Classroom News |Summer
Reading Lists |
Discipline Plan |
Nurse Notes
|
Hawk News |
 |
 |
|
||
|
Physical
Education |
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Shape of Our Nation's Children Highlights from Recent Studies More children in this country are overweight than ever before, about double the number who were heavy in the late 1970s. The latest statistics are part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and show: 13% of children ages 6 to 11 were overweight in 1999, up from 11% in 1988-1994 and 7% in the late 1970s 14% of children ages 12 to 19 were overweight in 1999, up from 11% in 1988-1994 and 5% in the late 1970s Obesity-related diseases cost the U.S. economy more than $100 billion every year. 1 Inactivity and poor diet cause at least 300,000 deaths a year in the United States. Only tobacco causes more preventable deaths. 1 Almost half of young people aged 12-21 and more than a third of high school students do not participate in vigorous physical activity on a regular basis. 1 Seventy-two percent of 9th graders participate in vigorous physical activity on a regular basis, compared with only 55% of 12th graders. 1 Children are not as active as they should be. Fewer than one in four children get 20 minutes of vigorous activity every day of the week. Less than one in four reported getting at least half an hour of any type of physical activity every single day. 2 About one in four children did not play on any sports teams, either at school or through community programs. 2 Physical activity peaks in 10th grade, at 11 hours per week as the median, and then begins a steady decline that is likely to continue into the adult years. 2 In all grade levels, girls get significantly less activity than boys, yet three-quarters of the girls surveyed felt they get enough exercise. 2 Participation Rates Participation in Physical Education Class Nationwide, 56.1% of students were enrolled in a physical education class. Female students in grade 9 (75.6%) were significantly more likely than female students in grades 11 and 12 (36.8% and 29.4%), respectively to be enrolled in a physical education class, and female students in grade 10 (56.6%) were significantly more likely than female students in grade 12 (29.4%) to be enrolled in a physical education class. 3 Male students in grade 9 (82.3%) were significantly more likely than male students in grades 11 and 12 (44.6% and 43.8%), respectively to be enrolled in a physical education class. 3 Daily participation in physical education class Nationwide, 29.1% of students attended high school physical education class daily, down from 42% in 1991 3 Among students enrolled in physical education class, 76.3% exercised more than 20 minutes during an average physical education class. Overall, male students (82.1%) were significantly more likely than female students (69.6%) to have exercised more than 20 minutes during an average physical education class. 3 About one in four children surveyed did not get any physical education in school. For those who did, 93% said they enjoyed physical education classes. However, physical education classes accounted for, at best, less than one and three-quarters hours of physical activity per week. 2 Participation on a sports team run by school Nationwide, 55.1% of students had played on sports teams during the 12 months preceding the survey. Overall, male students (61.7%) were significantly more likely than female students (48.5%) to have played on sports teams. 3 1 Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, Guidelines for School and Community Programs: Promoting Lifelong Physical Activity, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, March 1997. 2 International Life Sciences Institute, Improving Children's Health through Physical Activity: A New Opportunity, A Survey of Parents and Children about Physical Activity Patterns, July 1997. 3 Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance, 1999.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Sure, soccer builds
team spirit and provides a healthy outlet for those
after-school hours. But now doctors are finding that too
much soccer can be a bad thing. Young adolescents, they
say, are developing serious heel injuries, mostly because of
the shoes they wear while they play. John H. Walter, Jr.,
DPM, chairman of podiatric orthopedics and medicine at
Temple University, says heel pain is an all too common
complaint with young athletes, so he conducted a one-year
experiment to find the cause. His conclusion: Cleats force
the foot into a "negative heel position," which creates
pressure that can result in inflammation and pain. Unlike
running shoes, cleats aren't designed to absorb the constant
pounding they receive. This is particularly troublesome for
young players up to age 16, says Walter, as they are still
experiencing growth spurts. Nike, a major manufacturer of
soccer cleats, is conduction a study to determine the
relationship between injuries and soccer shoes. In the
meantime, Walter recommends these tips for young players: --Sandi Kahn Shelton, Working Mother - March 2000
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
compiled by C. Kerst -Davis, a fellow PE teacher from the state. "Physical activity is good not only for the heart, but also for the brain, feeding it glucose and oxygen, and increasing nerve connections, all of which makes it easier for children of all ages to learn. Numerous studies show that children who exercise do better in school." (Newsweek, 2/19/96) Exercise triggers the release of BDNF, a neurotropic growth factor that enhances cognition by boosting the ability of neurons to communicate with each other. It begins the electrical impulse. (Jean Blaydes, 9/99) What makes us move is also what makes us think (Cerebellum Research) Bodily Kinesthetic is one of eight Multiple Intelligences. (Gardner) Repetitive Gross Motor movement balances and produces brain chemicals that calm behavior and elevates self-esteem and self-worth and accommodates ADD/ADHD (Jensen). Heart-Brain Entrainment - The stronger the heart the stronger the learning. (Hannaford) 98% of all learning happens in the body and only 2% in the brain. (Pert) Memory is retrieved better when learned through movement (Jansen) Motor skills are fundamental to learning (Jensen) Stress reduction - exercise reduces cortisol levels that kill brain cells. Lifetime physical activity grows new brain cells to live longer. (Gage) Physical education provides a safe environment to practice individual and social life skills in a peer group. 85% of school age children are natural kinesthetic learners. Physical activity forces oxygen and glucose to the brain at greater rates to feed the brain needed nutrients. Crossing the midline uses the same neural connections that the brain uses to read, write, spell, and computate math. Physiologically the brain blocks learning when stress is present. Physical education provides the opportunity to increase the heart rate, releasing endorphins and serotonin, which are natural stress relievers. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
